STORMWATER PUBLIC EDUCATION PLAN FOR PERMITTED AREAS OF Berrien and Cass Counties, Michigan April 2020 City of Benton Harbor City of Bridgman City of Buchanan City of Niles City of St. Joseph Village of Stevensville Village of Edwardsburg Village of Grand Beach Village of Michiana Lincoln Charter Township St. Joseph Charter Township Berrien County Drain Commissioner Berrien County Road Department Cass County Water Resources Commissioner Cass County Road Commission Table of Contents Introduction.................................................................................................................................................... 1 Geographic Coverage ................................................................................................................................... 2 Purpose ......................................................................................................................................................... 8 Education Topics ........................................................................................................................................... 9 Target Audiences, Messages and Delivery Mechanisms ........................................................................... 11 Education Strategy ...................................................................................................................................... 14 Implementation ............................................................................................................................................ 15 Evaluation.................................................................................................................................................... 16 Appendix 1. Available Resources and Existing Efforts .............................................................................. 18 Appendix 2. Education Strategy ................................................................................................................. 20 Appendix 3. Sample Educational Materials Developed for the PEP ......................................................... 24 INTRODUCTION In accordance with the permit requirements for Federal Phase II Storm Water Regulations, this Public Education Plan (PEP) was developed for the permitted communities in Berrien and Cass Counties. These communities will be working collaboratively to fulfill the education related permit requirements. The purpose of the Public Education Plan (PEP) is to provide a framework to increase awareness of the connection between individual actions and the health of the watershed and water resources and to motivate the public to take appropriate actions to protect water quality. The overall goal is to promote, publicize and facilitate watershed education for the purpose of encouraging the public to reduce pollutants in storm water to the maximum extent practicable (MEP). Since the permitted municipalities in Berrien and Cass Counties are all either within the Lower St. Joseph River Watershed or have direct drainage to Lake Michigan, they share similar water quality concerns, so a partnership approach to education and outreach enables the municipalities and the counties to maximize their resources to more effectively reach a larger audience than could be accomplished alone. The plan will ensure outreach activities will reach diverse audiences with a variety of viewpoints and concerns. For successful implementation of the PEP, partnerships with local agencies and organizations have been and will continue to be formed to utilize and build on existing educational materials and programs that are familiar and relevant to the public. The PEP defines target audiences, develops specific messages, and selects delivery mechanisms to promote the goals and objectives of reducing pollutants in storm water runoff. The PEP includes a mechanism for evaluating the success and effectiveness of the plan. The measurable goals include realistic data collection that the participating communities can quantify and compare. A schedule was prepared for the 1 implementation of the various components of the PEP, indicating the dates for development and distribution of educational materials. GEOGRAPHIC COVERAGE Most of the communities are in the Lower St. Joseph River Watershed located in southwestern Michigan, flowing northwest from the City of Niles to its convergence with Lake Michigan in the City of St. Joseph. The Villages of Grand Beach and Michiana and portions of the Village of Stevensville and Lincoln and St. Joseph Townships have small tributaries that drain directly to Lake Michigan. All of the communities drain to Lake Michigan. The following communities are participating in the PEP. Townships - Berrien County Lincoln Charter Township St Joseph Charter Township Municipalities - Berrien County City of Benton Harbor City of Bridgman City of Buchanan City of Niles City of St. Joseph Village of Stevensville Village of Grand Beach Village of Michiana Municipalities - Cass County Village of Edwardsburg Drain Commission, Road Commission and Road Department Berrien County Drain Commissioner Berrien County Road Department Cass County Road Commission These permitted municipalities and agencies will work together A watershed is all of the to develop and implement the Public Education Plan. land that drains into a common body of water. Compliance with the NPDES Phase II regulations requires Watersheds surpass political boundaries and watershed residents to be informed, thus they will be more connect communities aware of their responsibilities for improving water quality. with a common resource. 2 Changing the way people manage their lawns, household hazardous wastes, refuse, and septic systems, can have a considerable impact on improving water quality. The maps on the following pages are from EGLE and show the urbanized areas covered in Berrien and Cass Counties based on the 2010 Census. 3 4 5 6 7 PURPOSE The purpose of the public education portion of the NPDES Phase II permit is to increase the awareness of watershed residents about how their everyday activities contribute pollutants to their community’s water resources. Most citizens recognize the recreational and aesthetic benefits they receive from water, and most even recognize that water quality degradation is a serious concern in the Great Lakes Region. However, most people have not made the connection that the majority of this pollution is generated from their normal everyday actions and not simply from large commercial and industrial sources. This plan conveys a strategy to not only increase awareness, but to also influence the public’s behaviors and actions to reduce the discharge of pollutants to stormwater. 8 EDUCATION TOPICS The PEP is designed to promote, publicize, and facilitate watershed education by encouraging the public to reduce the discharge of pollutants in storm water to the maximum extent practicable. Pollution prevention over treatment should be encouraged. This plan supports the implementation of a sufficient amount of educational activities to ensure that the targeted audiences are reached with appropriate messages for the following topics: 1. Personal watershed stewardship: Promote public responsibility and stewardship in the watershed(s). Key messages/concepts for this topic will be: Definition of a watershed Information on the St. Joseph River Watershed and its sub watersheds in Berrien and Cass Counties and the need for improvement and protection Actions individuals can take to improve and protect watersheds 2. Ultimate storm water discharge location and What is an MS4? It is a potential impacts: Inform and educate the public Municipal Separated Storm Water System which is a about the connection of the MS4 (catch basins, drainage system (including roads, catch basins, curbs, storm drains and ditches) to area waterbodies and gutters, parking lots, ditches, the potential impacts these could have on the conduits, pumping devices, or man-made channels) that is surface waters of the state. Key designated or used for collecting stormwater. messages/concepts for this topic will be: Storm drains discharge to water bodies Stormwater discharged from separate storm sewer systems does not receive treatment prior to discharge Impacts of storm water pollutants in the watershed Knowledge of separate stormwater drainage system in a person’s neighborhood and the waterbody to which the storm water is discharged 3. Public reporting of illicit discharges: Educate the public on illicit discharges and promote public reporting of illicit discharges or improper disposal of materials into the MS4. Key messages/concepts for this topic will be: What is an illicit discharge and how to identify one Information on how to report an illicit discharge Water quality impacts associated with illicit discharges and improper waste disposal Consequences/penalties associated with illicit discharges and improper waste disposal 9 4. Car/Pavement/Power Washing: Promote preferred cleaning materials and procedures for car, pavement and power washing. Key messages/concepts for this topic will be: preferred cleaning materials and practices, such as use of phosphate free products 5. Lawn and Pet Care: Inform and educate the public on proper application and disposal of pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers. Also, promote proper disposal practices for grass clippings, leaf litter and animal wastes that may enter into the MS4. Key messages/concepts for these topics will be: Pesticide, herbicide and fertilizer